Observe Carefully
Before we can build wisely, we have to learn to see wisely.
Every builder learns, sooner or later, that foundations matter.
There is no amount of retrofitting that can compensate for a poorly designed infrastructure or a poorly built framework.
And sometimes, the problem is that we are looking at everything except what the structure is built upon.
Most of us move through life with confidence we have very little proof we should have. We react before we understand. We accept ideas before we examine them. We inherit conclusions without knowing what produced them.
We become certain without ever being discerning because much of our certainty was inherited.
It came with our families, our communities, and the people within our sphere. We grew into beliefs without ever being granted the right to ask questions.
Why do we believe this? Is this what God said, or what we learned to say God said? What assumptions were hidden beneath it? Are we defending this because it is true or because it is familiar?
We inherit beliefs before we're equipped to examine them. These are not just questions about ideas we believe. They get to the heart of why we believe what we believe.
These are not just questions about what we believe. They get to the heart of why we believe it. Many of us are familiar with systems where we were taught not to question. And sometimes, you learn the most about a system by watching what happens when someone finally does.
Careful observation may come more naturally to some of us. But what comes naturally to one person can still become a spiritual discipline for another.
And I believe observing carefully is a form of stewardship.
To observe is to take seriously what God has placed before us.
Nehemiah did not begin rebuilding Jerusalem the moment he arrived. Before he announced a plan, assembled a team, or placed a stone, he walked the walls in the dark.
He looked.
He understood the condition of what he had been called to rebuild.
Observation is an act of faithfulness.
We often devote enormous energy to managing what is failing while ignoring the underlying framework that keeps reproducing the failure.
Observing carefully is the willingness to slow down long enough to notice what God is revealing. It means continuing to pay attention, even when what we begin to see confronts the assumptions we brought with us.
It means resisting the urge to explain away the discrepancies we begin to see simply because they do not fit what we already believe.
Some understanding only comes through obedience.
There is wisdom in looking long enough to understand what is actually there before deciding what should be done with it.
So before we build wisely, we have to first learn to observe.